A Memory Forgotten
by SebDaryus
Summary: If one person suddenly disappeared from the world, would it make much difference? [LuZo]
1. Something's Amiss

**Title:** A Memory Forgotten  
**Author:** Seb Daryus & Stostina  
**Pairing:** LuZo  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Spoilers:** End of Enies Lobby (Thousand Sunny!)  
**Summary:** If one person suddenly disappeared from the world, would it make much difference? LuZo

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**Chapter One: Something's Amiss**

---

"GOOD MORNING !!!"

From the moment Luffy had opened his eyes that morning, he had been a little bundle of joy and energy - even more than usual. And why shouldn't he, after all? It was his second - or third - most favourite day of the year, and he was going to definitely enjoy it to it's fullest !! He had been going on about it for the past few weeks, as soon as he realized how close it was getting to that particular day.

'_And we'll have lots of cake! And meat! And sake, because Zoro likes it, right Zoro? And - OH! WHAT ABOUT A MEAT-CAKE!!'_

Birthdays always were a spectacular thing on the Thousand Sunny, with the combined efforts of their Cook and Captain, it usually made for an event that was difficult to forget. Sanji would come up with the most delectable delights, Luffy would be overflowing with utter glee, acting almost as if it were _his_ birthday and the rest of the crew would join in on the festivities in Honor of whoever's birthday it happened to be.

But today was different. Today was _special_. Up until a few months ago they had all known the day of and had celebrated just about everyone's Birthday--save for one person.

'_I don't like birthdays.'_

Unfortunately, Luffy was hardly one to give up so easily...

Especially when there was promise of cake and meat.

"Luffy, keep it down." Nami called out tiredly from her seat at the kitchen table, staring irritatedly over at the loud-mouthed boy who had burst in through the Galley door.

Luffy instantly deflated, seeing his Swordsman no where in sight. But he quickly recovered and his grin swept back across his face as he ran across the kitchen to stand excitedly next to Sanji, peeking over his shoulder with glee. The cook glanced annoyed over his shoulder and tried to swat the drooling Captain away from his workspace.

"Oi, Luffy, do you mind? I'm trying to cook breakfast! If you get any drool in Nami's food, I swear I'll kill you!" He yelled out, suddenly whirling around to shove the rubber boy away with his foot.

The drooling boy frowned, tilting his head to get a better look around Sanji's foot at the food that was being plated. It seemed like the normal breakfast that they were used to getting everyday since Sanji had joined them, but it obviously wasn't pleasing Luffy very much.

"Where's the sprinkles? And Chocolate? And Meat Cupcakes?" He whined pathetically, his cheek squishing slightly against the bottom of Sanji's foot - which was still trying to push him from the kitchen.

Sanji gave him a strange, almost disgusted look, before giving one last forceful shove, finally sending the other stumbling backwards by a few feet.

"Why the hell would I serve shit like that for breakfast, dumbass!" He huffed in rage, sweeping the plates of food from the counter onto his arms and heading towards the table. Most of everyone was already gathered there, save for Zoro, and they seemed eager to get their meal underway.

Luffy puffed out his cheeks in a pout, following after Sanji, hands on hips.

"Well you could have at least cooked something speciaaaal!" Luffy whined again, eyes glancing towards the delicious looking food that was being set out before everyone. Sanji only rolled his eyes at Luffy and took his seat, not wanting to argue about the _breakfast menu_ any longer.

"Eeww.. Meat cupcakes, Luffy? That sounds disgusting!" Usopp said with a laugh, sticking his tongue out at the thought. Chopper laughed along with his friend, mimicking him in sticking out his tongue before beginning to eat his breakfast.

Luffy crossed his arms over his chest, cheeks puffing out slightly as he watched his Nakama beginning their very-un-birthday-y breakfast _without_ Zoro! Really! How _rude_!

Robin raised a brow at her Captain, pausing in the middle of a bite as she eyed him cautiously. She couldn't help but feel as though something wasn't quite right with this situation - perhaps the fact that Luffy hadn't sat down to eat his and a bit of everyone else's meal yet.

"Hey, Luffyman! If you're not gonna eat that..." Franky said with a grin as he began to reach across the table, knowing very well the rubbery boy very well wouldn't allow _anyone_ to touch his food.

Luffy's eyes widened as he watched that large hand get nearer and nearer to his plate of un-special -- though delicious looking nonetheless -- breakfast. His nostrils flared suddenly as he leapt at the table, snatching his plate to begin devouring it without a second though as to the location of his First Mate.

'_He's probably mad 'cause we know it's his birthday!'_ He thought with a bit of a grin. It shouldn't be _too_ unusual for Sanji not to cook the Swordsman a special breakfast for his Birthday, right? They liked to pretend they hated each other and all that, after all.

Luffy glanced up from his place at Franky, just to be sure he had given up on trying to _steal_ his food. Franky, fortunately, seemed to have forgotten all about it and was currently talking excitedly about upgrading some things on the ship that didn't particularly sound very interesting to the young Captain. There weren't too many _SUPER!_'s in the conversation, so he could guess it wouldn't matter either way to him.

---

"Zooooorooooooooo!" Luffy called out from one of the upper decks across the ship, his hands cupped around his mouth. He had been looking for his Swordsman for nearly two hours now, and he hadn't seen hide nor hair of him anywhere on the ship. He had even checked in Nami's closet! Wherever Zoro was hiding, it sure was a good place... Maybe he was playing hide and seek?

Usopp looked up from his sprawled position on the lawn at Luffy, a mixed look of confusion and amusement over his face.

"You know, Luffy, if you're trying to play _Marco, Polo_, you're supposed to say _MAAAARRRCOOOOOOOOO_!! Not _POOOOOOLLLOOOOOOOO_!" He called out, unable to keep himself from grinning at his Captain.

Luffy pouted down at his Sniper, ignoring his obvious teasing. "Usopp, have you seen Zoro? I can't find him anywhere! I don't think he's playing hide and seek..."

"Who?"

"Zoro."

"What?"

"Zoro!"

"What's a Zoro?"

Luffy frowned in annoyance at his sharpshooter, leaning heavily on the railing while he looked down at the other boy. "Usopp!!" He yelled out, hoping to get the other to stop _messing_ with him. They should all be dancing and partying and singing by now! Luffy wanted to have a Birthday Party, and no one was helping, damnit!

Usopp stared blankly at Luffy, only raising a brow. "What? No, seriously, Luffy. Just tell me what you're looking for and I'll help!"

Luffy let out a loud, nearly screaming, groan, hands grabbing at his hair in frustration as he spun away from the long-nosed liar on his deck. Usopp was being _no_ fun at all right now! Maybe everyone was just mad that Zoro wouldn't let them know what his birthday was... Well, whatever it was, it was really starting to get to him!

Franky popped his head out from the Galley to inspect what sort of fit his Captain was pulling. Judging by his experience, the poor guy was bored to death. It had been a while since their last adventure, after all..

"What's goin' on?" He asked curiously, edging out from the doorway. He still had some things to finish up in the Kitchen, but he figured it could wait until he found out what Luffy's hissy fit was about.

Luffy stopped, hands still in his hair, looking at Franky. A relieved look spread over his face, suddenly realizing there were far more helpful people on his ship than stinky Usopp.

"Franky!" He wailed out joyfully, bounding over to the older man, grinning from ear to ear. "Wanna help me find Zoro? I think he's hiding somewhere."

Franky lift a hand to rub his chins, tilting his head slightly in thought. Luffy was rocking on the heels of his feet in anticipation - knowing that as soon as they found Zoro, the fun could start.

"Hmmm... sure!" Franky struck a pose, slamming the Galley door shut with his hip, "FRANKY'S SUUPER PET FINDING AGENCY IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS!!" He called out, rocking his hips from side to side as he mostly held his pose.

Luffy let out a laugh at his Nakama, not entirely sure what his Cyborg was going on about, but it seemed pretty funny to him. His crew was so weird!

"Alright !! Let's go, Franky! ZOOROOOOO! WE'RE COMING FOR YOU!" He bellowed out across the ship proudly, getting ready to take off for another sweep of the ship.

Franky quickly reached out to grab onto Luffy's shoulder with a loud laugh, "Woa, woa, woah there! Not so fast! I need to know what he looks like first, Luffy!"

Luffy turned his head to give Franky what possibly could have been the most confused stare he's had in his life. Franky didn't look like he was joking. Maybe he was in on Usopp's joke...?

"Zoro." Was all he answered. Why did he need to explain what Zoro looked like, anyway?

Franky pushed up his sunglasses to rest on his forehead, arching a brow at Luffy. "Alright, at least we know it's name... what does it look like? Cat? Dog? Rabbit? Rat? What are we lookin' for?"

Luffy frowned lightly and scratched the side of his head, not quite sure what to make out of Franky's question. '_Maybe he's playing some new game...'_ He thought with a visible nod to himself.

"Alright." He began, "Zoro looks more like a... Shark! Let's go!"

"Well, if he's a Shark, then he'll probably be in the _fish tank_, Luffy! Unless he managed to jump over the side of the ship... if that's the case, then I'm sorry..." Franky turned his head away dramatically, taking in a deep breath, "He's _GONE!_"

"I don't think Zoro's in the tank... I already checked there!" Luffy nodded again, confident that he had looked good enough in there. He wasn't exactly what sort of game they were playing right now, but he almost felt as though he was starting to understand it. Or... at least, he thought he was.

"Well! I guess he's gone then, Luffy. I gotta get back to work - Sanji needs me to fix the oven for him --" Franky was cut off by a deep frown from Luffy. _'I hope he wasn't too attached to that Shark!!'_ He found himself thinking sympathetically, steeling his emotions against the tragedy of a boy loosing his beloved pet fish.

"I really need to find Zoro, Franky!! It's his _BIRTHDAY_! And Usopp's being stupid and won't help." Luffy wailed out, tromping a foot indignantly.

"Who's birthday is it?" Came Nami's voice as she emerged from the Galley door behind Franky, a map held in her hands.

Luffy turned his frown on Nami now, only to receive an raised brow in return.

"It's **Zoro's** birthday! Don't pretend that you forgot!" Luffy said, perhaps a bit more irritated than he meant to sound, but could he really be blamed?

"His lost pet." Franky offered in what seemed to be a 'helpful' voice, but Luffy didn't get it at all. Sure, Sanji sometimes joked and _called _him 'Captain's Pet', but that didn't mean he was actually Luffy's PET!

"Luffy, did you sneak an animal on board?!" Nami roared, whirling from Franky to face the rather unhappy boy in front of her.

Usopp quickly scrambled to his feet, suddenly getting rather interested in what was going on above him.

"What'd Luffy sneak on board! How come you didn't share it, Luffy?! That's not fair!" He cried out, making his way towards the stairs that led to where the others were.

"I didn't sneak anything on board! I'm trying to find _Zoro_!" Luffy said, trying to put as much emphasis on his First mate's name as he could, making sure it was _perfectly_ understandable. Was _everyone_ in on this stupid joke but him? Maybe that's why he couldn't find Zoro..

"And _what_, exactly, is a... 'Zoro'?" Nami asked skeptically, narrowing her eyes at her Captain and crossing her arms over her chest, "I swear Luffy, if you brought some stupid pet on board, I am _not_ going to be happy."

Luffy stared at Nami for a long moment, trying to see if there was any sign of joke in her face, before walking straight past her to make his way to the lounge. His brows were furrowed, and he did _not_ look amused in the least. He didn't like whatever Game they were playing if he couldn't play along too!

Nami looked curiously at Franky, who just shrugged, before following after Luffy - Franky and Usopp trailing along behind her.

"Robin. Where's Zoro?" Luffy asked pointedly, any hint of play gone from his voice as he stared straight at his Archeologist. Nami may be able to play long with this stupid Game, but Robin would tell him! He was the Captain, after all!

Robin raised her eyes from her book, giving Luffy a questioning look. "I don't know, Captain-san. If you tell me what '_Zoro_' looks like, I'll be more than happy to help you look." Her voice was just as calm and serious as it ever would be, sensing Luffy was in no mood for any sort of joking.

Unfortunately, much to her confusion, Luffy's response didn't seem to be very pleased. The small frown that had already been on his face deepened even more as he stared, waiting expectantly at Robin. As if... _waiting_ for her to give him whatever information it was he wanted.

"See Luffy? No one knows what this _Zoro_ is. Just tell us what it looks like and they'll LOOK for it!" Nami said irritatedly from behind her Captain, hands on his hips - careful not to commit herself to actually _looking_ for anything.

Luffy whirled around to stare at Nami, still frowning.

"You know who Zoro is! He's our Nakama!" He all but cried out, liking this situation less and less by the moment. "Stop pretending like you don't know, it's not funny!"

Usopp stepped past Nami, giving Luffy a weird look, "What are you talking about Luffy? Why would we _pretend_ we don't know someone who's our Nakama?"

Franky slid in between Usopp and Nami, arm held out in front of himself as he squeeze past the two, "Waaait!" He wailed before Luffy's temper could raise any further, "I know what's going on!"

Everyone turned to look at Franky, who was now standing in front of Nami and Usopp, striking a rather _dashing_ pose for everyone.

Robin closed her book, setting it on the couch next to her. Something seemed... amiss.

"What _I_ think happened was that **Luffy** picked up a crew member on the last island we were at... and forgot to tell us!"

Nami looked between Luffy and Franky, a disbelieving look on her face. "_What_? Luffy, please tell me you didn't do that!!" She cried out pathetically, an unpleasant look washing over her face as she spoke.

"No!! What are you guys talking about! You _know_ who Zoro is! He's been here all the time!" Luffy urged, looking between his Nakama, hoping for one of them to finally stop this joke.

"Luffy, I've never heard that name before in my life." Nami said flatly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I don't care what Game you're playing, it's not funny!" Luffy said, not sounding nearly as stern as he was trying to be, "I want to know where Zoro is! Even if he told you not to tell me where he is, _I don't care_!"

Nami slowly uncrossed her arms, a worried look spreading over her face as she watched Luffy rage on. She turned to look at Usopp, frowning slightly, before looking back at her Captain. "Luffy, we're not playing any _Game_. Are you feeling alright?"

A slender arm suddenly sprouted out of Luffy's shoulder, reaching up to press it's hand against his forehead. Luffy turned to look at Robin, still frowning unhappily.

"His temperature seems normal." Robin observed, allowing the arm to vanish into a small puff of petals. She had stood up at some point during Nami and Luffy's conversation, and was making her way towards the group. Her brows were furrowed slightly, wearing a worried look that it seemed all of them but Luffy were sharing. "Captain-san, if I knew who this Zoro was, I would tell you." She reassured him, though it only managed to make poor Luffy even more confused.

"Yeah, Luffy!" Usopp added in, peeking over Franky's large shoulder.

"I still say it jumped over board." Franky said solemnly with a nod, trying to give Luffy a most sympathetic look.

"Zoro wouldn't jump over board! He's our Nakama!" Luffy quickly replied, whirling to face Franky.

Franky raised his hands in front of him in defense, "Hey! Just my honest opinion, bro. If your shark wasn't in the tank, that's probably where he is... Unless Sanji's cooked him !!" He gasped at this sudden realization, clamping a hand down over his mouth as soon as he had let out those words. "I mean -- Sanji would _never_ cook your pet shark, Luffy. He's probably free and swimming and _ALIVE_ and SUPER in the sea!!" He hastily added in, laughing all too loudly and nervously.

Nami blinked, "So, wait. Zoro's a Shark?"

"No!! I only said he _looked_ like a Shark because Franky asked what animal he looked like! I thought we were playing a game, so I said _Shark_."

"I'm confused, Luffy." Usopp said dully, obviously not understanding what was going on at all.

Luffy took a step back from everyone, suddenly realizing they weren't playing a game. Why didn't anyone know who he was talking about? How could they forget someone like Zoro? It was his _birthday_! If he could only find Zoro, then this whole mess would be over with... Everything would be alright once he found him.

"Is this where everyone is? What're you all doing down here?" Came Sanji's voice as he and Chopper entered the lounge.

Luffy turned quickly to look at him with a pleading look in his eyes, catching the cook slightly off guard, "Sanji! Chopper! You guys know who Zoro is, right? Tell them who Zoro is!"

Sanji looked down a Chopper, to find an equally confused face before shrugging and turning back to look at Luffy, "Nope, sorry, Luffy. Never heard of 'em."

"Sorry, me either. Who is he?" Chopper asked a bit cheerfully, smiling up at his Captain.

"But - but! Sanji, you fight with Zoro all the time! And you always take naps with him, Chopper! And he always comes to play tag with us, Usopp! And - and he's our NAKAMA!"

Luffy had never really felt panicked in his life. Sure, maybe when his Grandfather did some pretty scary things when he was younger, he might have panicked then -- but once he had set sail he hadn't been in a situation where he had panicked. He always had confidence in everything that he did, knew it would turn out right no matter what, as long as he has his Nakama... but what was he supposed to do now? Everyone was looking at him as though he were crazy. Not the usual _'Luffy is INSANE!'_ looks he would get when he would do something stupid, but the worried, confused, and almost scared looks people would give someone who was literally ill with insanity.

Of course he would panic.

"Luffy, I think you should lay down for a little while," Chopper began, padding towards the Captain, "Have you been drinking enough water? Maybe you're dehydrated. Or! Have you been drinking any sea water? You're not supposed to do that, you know! It's bad for you!"

"Why don't any of you remember Zoro?! I'm not deehai- dehydro... I'm not that!" This seemed too unreal for Luffy to believe it was really happening. Any moment now he'd wake up and laugh over it with Zoro and everyone else... Right?

"Luffy, I think you should listen to Chopper." Nami said softly, staring with a concerned expression at her Captain.

"But..." Luffy tried, backing slowly towards the couch as the small Doctor neared him, his fuzzy little face serious and concerned all at the same time.

'_Zoro...'_ Luffy thought worriedly as he was ushered to sit down, his limbs starting to feel numb. _'Where are you..?'_

---


	2. The Virus of Hallucination

**Author's Note:** We are sooo sorry for taking OVER A MONTH to update this chapter. Stos and I actually intended to post two chapters today instead of one... but due to a fish-tank emergency, we're only posting this one. XD In the next few days Chapter Three will be posted. 

Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and especially to Princess Vegena for sending us a PM-thingy over here reminding us it had been a MONTH since we updated. We need an alarm clock or something..

( Also - We didn't have this chapter beta-ed, so sorry for any mistakes XD )

**Chapter Two: ** **The V****irus of Hallucination and Silent **_**Death!**_

"What should we do, Chopper?" Nami asked the small Doctor quietly, nearly in a whisper. Luffy had been left in the Sick Bay with Franky while the rest of the crew were huddled together in the Lounge. Chopper had examined their Captain and couldn't manage to find anything wrong with him -- other than the obvious. No matter what they did, they couldn't get Luffy to talk any sense. He kept insisting about _Zoro_. It was practically the only thing he was saying.

"I don't know Nami... Maybe he's just over stressed or over worked, or something. I've heard of cases like this before." Chopper answered, nodding slowly as he spoke.

"This is really weird. Maybe he's caught some weird virus! Like... a virus that makes you _crazy_! Yeah, and --"

"Usopp. Please." Nami sighed, not even bothering to look up at the Long-Nose.

"Do you think it'll last long?" Sanji pressed, leaning back in his seat, "I know it couldn't have been anything he ate. Everyone else but Nami and Robin would be having the same problem too, right?"

"I really don't know Sanji..." Chopper said down-heartedly.

---

"And then, after we picked up Sanji, he fought Mihawk! He didn't win, though... but he sure did get a really cool scar! It's like _thiiiiis_! Aaall across his chest." Luffy drew an invisible line diagonally across his chest. He had been narrorating everything he could think of that had to do with Zoro, starting when he first joined the crew.

"Woaaah! _The_ Mihawk? Hawkeye Mihawk? And he didn't **DIE**?! That must be some SUPER Swordsman, Luffy!!" Franky exclaimed, eyes wide as he listened to his Captain's stories. By now he had forgotten the fact that this _Zoro_ person wasn't supposed to exist, and could only marvel at how Luffy told the stories. The Straw Hatted boy was no longer as gloomy and upset as he had been, and was actually looking pretty cheerful.

"Yeah, I know! He's going to be the Greatest Swordsman in the world... And then -- ooh, the funniest stuff happened while we were at that Fish Guy's place! Zoro was like - bleeding all over the place, and fighting this squid guy! He had sooo many arms and swords! I don't really know what all happened, because I was busy... but Usopp told me everything that happened!"

"Wow, I hope I get to meet him someday!" Franky said with a laugh and a nod, looking a bit whimsical.

Luffy laughed as well, nodding along with Franky, "Yeah, you'd really li - WAIT A MINUTE, YOU ALREADY KNOW ZORO, YOU BASTARD!!"

Franky practically leapt three feet in the air as Luffy yelled suddenly, snapping out of his awe-struck daze to realize _Zoro_ wasn't supposed to exist.

"I don't get it. How come everyone's forgotten Zoro? It's not like I _imagined_ everything that happened." Luffy had managed to calm down and was at least _trying_ to take this on rationally. He knew he was right, all he had to do was get everyone to remember Zoro. And then find him. ... Or should he find Zoro first, then get everyone to remember him? Well -- either way, he doubted they'd let him out of the Sick Room anytime soon. Everyone _did_ seem pretty worried, after all.

Franky stared at Luffy before giving a small shrug, "So... if this Zoro guy really does exist--"

"He does."

"-- then how come none of us can remember him?"

"That's what I wanna know! If someone's responsible for this, I'm gonna beat the crap out of them!"

Franky reached up to rub his second chin thoughtfully, leaning back in his seat next to the medical bed Luffy was half-laying on. He just didn't know what to make of the situation. Luffy seemed to be so sure about what he was saying... but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't manage to remember even the slightest trace of _Zoro_. A big part of him was telling him to just trust Luffy - like he had many times before. That guy was his _Captain_, wasn't he? But then again... It was hard to believe something like this when he, himself, couldn't remember this guy.

_'I knew I should have found some way to keep a back-up of my brain.'_ He thought mournfully as he stared at Luffy, who had gone back to explaining the Story of Zoro. _'This would make a really super song, though.'_

---

"For now, I agree with Doctor-san. However, if he continues to insist on Zoro with no other signs of illness, I'm going to have to go with whatever Captain-san says."

"Robin-chwan is so adorable when she's doubting Luffy's sanity!!"

"SANJI! Don't joke around like that!!" Usopp wailed, latching onto the cook's sleeve with a pleading look in his eyes. Sanji may not be too concerned with this, but _he_ was starting to freak out. What if _he_ was the next one to catch the Craziness-Virus? What if _Kaya_ was just a part of his imagination? Or... or anyone else in the crew? Hell, what if **he** was a figment of someone's imagination!

"Oh come on, lighten up, Usopp. Luffy's going to be fine. If he's sick, Chopper'll fix him up." Sanji muttered around his cigarette, rolling his eyes at the Sharp shooter.

"Bastard, your faith in me doesn't make me happy!!" Chopper squealed out, wiggling from side to side, clapping his hoofs together joyfully.

"Onee-san, I know there are a lot of weird things on the Grand Line, but I don't know how we could just _forget_ one of our Nakama. Maybe if we couldn't remember anything else that was going on, but this is just _one person_ we're forgetting. And why would Luffy be the only one to remember? Easy -- because Zoro _doesn't exist_." Nami said with a slight huff, arms crossed over her chest as she eyed the calm woman sitting near her.

"I still stand by what I have said." Robin said with a small, almost sad smile. She wasn't very comfortable with the idea of doubting her Captain in anything serious - much less doubting his _sanity_.

"But we already went through all the Cabins - if there _was_ a Zoro, his stuff would be SOMEWHERE on this ship. Not to mention the fact that _he would be on the ship_!" Usopp exclaimed, leaning on his knees, a few small beads of sweat trickling down the side of his face. "Am I the _only one_ concerned about catching Luffy's obviously rare virus of hallucination and silent _death_?"

"Aaah!! Rare virus of hallucination and silent _DEATH_?! Why didn't you say anything sooner, Usopp?! I've never heard of a virus like that!! Quick, someone get a Doctor!" Chopper wailed out, staring at his long-nosed lair of a friend in utter horror.

"Calm down, Chopper, Usopp's just over-reacting. Luffy doesn't have a rare virus of hallucination and silent _death_, alright? He's just a little over-stressed is all. He'll get over it soon..." Nami sighed exasperatedly, shooting Usopp a sharp glare. Of course she couldn't help but wonder if Usopp was at least partially right... This 'overly-stressed' theory wasn't exactly the strongest thing they had to work with, after all. Though Nami didn't sound too upset by what was going on, it was obvious to just about everyone she was pretty worried about what was happening with her Captain.

"Oh."

"Maybe we should just try to talk some sense into Luffy." Sanji offered, his voice eased mostly of it's previously joking air.

Chopper quickly shook his head, crossing his furry little arms over his chest with a small frown, "No, that won't do. It could only work him up even more. The best thing to do right now is to not talk about it too much - don't encourage him, but don't try to tell him Zoro doesn't exist. You saw how he got last time when we were all trying to tell him..."

Robin closed her eyes, letting out a quiet sigh. All the information she had taken in over the past few hours only seemed to confuse her mind even more. Should she believe her Captain? Normally the answer to that question would be as simple as _Do you want to live?_ Sadly - there had been times where the answer to that particular question was just as foggy as this one.

She wanted to believe Luffy. She wanted to throw all of Chopper's theories out the window and simply laugh at the very notion of them. This, however, she knew she could not do. As they so often managed to forget, Monkey D Luffy was still only a man. He wasn't some invulnerable fortress that he'd like everyone to believe he was - he wasn't completely void of any problems that may trouble anyone else his age.

He was still a man that was just as fragile as any other person in their world - and maybe a little more in some aspects. Though she couldn't even begin to imagine what sort of pressure a Pirate Captain would be put under - especially one of his young age - it almost hurt to think that it could be so great to cause their Captain to be in such a state.

---

"And today was his birthday, too... I've been looking forward to this. We were gonna have parties and... I had something to give him. I wonder where he is." Luffy tilted his head, resting his chin on his palm.

"You ain't worried about him?"

"Naah, Zoro'll be fine. No one will kill him. I just hope we find him soon." Luffy let out a sigh, flopping down onto his back, arms spread out on the bed.

"Well... if Zoro's not on the ship - maybe he really _is_ in the sea. I mean, what if he fell over board?" Franky offered, eyes widening slightly, "We should turn the ship around!"

"No one's turning the ship around," Nami said as she entered the Sick Bay, frowning lightly at her blue-haired Nakama. _Really_! What did that idiot think he was doing?! He should know better than to encourage Luffy in this state...

Luffy sat up, turning to look at Nami and Robin. "Franky's right! We should turn the ship around, Zoro might have fallen off! If we just find him, everything'll be alright again." He nodded at himself with a smile on his face, once again confident in himself.

"Man, you guys should hear half the things this Zoro's done! He sounds like one Super guy! I'm getting pretty pumped about meeting him -- _again_, that is." Franky added the last in after a quick, sharp look from Luffy.

Nami gave Franky a silent, chiding look as Robin took up another seat near Franky and Luffy.

"No, but seriously guys, we should turn the ship around. Zoro can last a while, but he's going to get _hungry_ soon!" Luffy nodded to himself in agreement to his own words.

Nami glanced between Luffy and Robin, a slightly worried look on her face - Franky wasn't being helpful in the least. He was only nodding enthusiastically along with Luffy.

She put on her best lying smile she had and turned again to face Luffy, "Alright! I'll tell Usopp to turn the ship around!"

While Franky and Luffy were obliviously cheering about finding Zoro, Robin gave their Navigator a curious and slightly confused look. Nami only gave her a small, weak smile back and started out of the room, patting the other on the shoulder as she passed.

"Good luck, Onee-san." She said quietly.

Yes, she had just told a bold-faced lie to her Captain. But Nami felt as though it was her _duty_ to do something like this in this delicate situation - and besides - it wasn't as though this was the _first_ time she had lied to Luffy about something, right? She'd just stay above deck for a while and let everyone know what she was doing - and that Franky would most likely be of no help whatsoever - then she would go back down and try to help Robin.

Which was what _Usopp_ was supposed to be doing right now... bastard. Where had he gone off to? She thought he had been right behind her on the way to the Lounge, but apparently he had chickened out at some point and snuck off to hide somewhere.

'_Figures...'_ She thought bitterly to herself as she took off towards the Galley.

Robin quietly watched as Nami made her way out of the Lounge before refocusing her attention on her Captain and Shipwright. She could still remember Chopper's words very clearly.. even more so as she watched Luffy talk enthusiastically about how they could '_start celebrating his birthday as soon as they found him'._

'_Listen, you guys.' _Chopper had said, _'There's also another possibility of what's wrong with Luffy. I've only heard of a few cases like this, but it's still possible.'_

"Hey, Robin, you wanna hear about Zoro too?" Luffy's bright voice pierced through her thoughts, almost as though he could feel her mood turning darker.

Robin gave a small smile, unable to deny him as always, "Of course, Captain-san. I would love to." And even as it was such a simple thing, his face seemed to brighten even more, if it were possible.

As he spoke, going on and on in a rather jumbled-up timeline of explanations - with Franky interrupting to let her know if some incident happened before or after another incident - the Doctor's words were ringing throughout her mind.

'_Zoro could be a representation of something strong that has kept Luffy supported all these years... If something drastic happened to Luffy, he may have created Zoro as an explanation for a break down.'_

"And it's really cool how he can just driiink and driiiiink and driiiiiink all day - like, not milk or juice or anything, but _beer_ and _sake_ - and _not get drunk! - _well not too drunk." He hastily added in as an afterthought, "Maaa Zoro's so _coooooool_!"

'_Maybe today has some sort of significance to Luffy... He's been saying that today is Zoro's birthday, right?'_

"I don't get where all his presents went - I know you guys bought or made him some stuff! Aah--!! Not like I was looking in the closets Nami told me not to look in because she thought I'd tell Zoro what they were, but I TOTALLY WOULDN'T tell him ANYTHING, Robin! Really !! But I just know because, you know, you guys would get him stuff because you're _Good Nakama!!_ Ahahaa... ha."

' _You guys should try to find out if something's bothering him. Sanji and me will stay up here so it won't be so obvious, ok?'_

Robin smiled a little and let out a soft laugh at her Captain's frantic explaining, "It's alright Captain-san, I'm not angry with you for looking." It was almost as though she couldn't help herself but to _humor_ him. She knew she shouldn't be, especially with Chopper's _Doctor's Orders_ that he had given to everyone, but it didn't seem to be bothering things too much. If she had said anything else - or nothing at all, for that matter - she was certain his reaction might have been worse.

"We couldn't find any of his other belongings, either, Captain-san." Robin spoke before she could catch herself - not that she wanted to, that is. She wasn't very comfortable with keeping things like this from her Captain. She was certain it wouldn't trigger any sort of break down like Chopper had feared, anyway.

"Eeeeh? REALLY? Man, someone stole his stuff then, too! I'm really gonna kick their ass now... Haha, if they took his swords, they're gonna be in trouble." Luffy grinned happily at Robin, flopping back on the bed, "How long do I have to stay in here? Can I go out and play now? I wanna look for Zoro! We're heading back the way we went, right? There aren't enough people on deck looking for him!"

"Captain-san, I think there is something you should know."

Luffy was silent for a moment, head tilted to the side as he stared at Robin with what was most certainly a dumb stare. Before Robin could continue, however, Luffy interrupted her, a grin on his face and a quiet laugh in his voice.

"Nami's not turning the ship around, is she?"

Robin only shook her head, an apologetic expression on her face. Franky quickly stood up from where he was seated, shock spread all across his face.

"WHAT ! What do you mean not turnin' the ship around?! What about Zoro!" He yelled frantically, hoping Robin would run straight up on deck to have her turn the thing around herself.

Luffy settled his hands behind his head, letting out a cheerful laugh, "Yeah, I thought so! Nami had that weird look on her face when she said it - like the one she gets when she tells me I can have two breakfasts, and then starts hitting me and yelling at me."

Even if it weren't, Robin could hear an invitation in the words he spoke. _Do you have anything else you want to tell me?_ Ever since that incident at Enies Lobby and Water Seven she had found it difficult to keep anything on her mind from Luffy.

In all reality, Luffy wasn't quite sure what was going on.

Everything had a weird feeling to it - ever since he had realized something was horribly wrong and that they weren't playing with him. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was sure even he doubted his own sanity at least a little bit, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to consider the option that Zoro simply _didn't exist_. It was stupid, wasn't it? Of course Zoro existed. It was just that everyone else had forgotten him.

Yes, everyone was probably thinking he was insane. He wasn't stupid, he knew that very well. But that still didn't take away from the fact that he was the Captain. He wasn't really mad at Nami for lying to him about turning the ship around - she lied to him all the time about little things, and this wasn't really a big deal. If he didn't feel the ship turn soon, though, he would just go up there and _turn it himself_. Because in the end it didn't really matter all that much of they didn't believe him, or thought he was crazy. _He was going to find Zoro, no matter what. _Even if Zoro _didn't_ exist, he would find him.

"Doctor-san has a theory of what may explain '_Zoro'_." Robin finally said, catching a pouting Franky and a seemingly empty-headed Luffy's attention, "He purposed that-"

"CHOPPER PURPOSED TO SOMEONE!?"

"No, Captain-san. He _suggested_-"

"Well that's not what you SAID!"

"He suggested that you may have had some sort of traumatic experience recently to cause you to fabricate the existence of Zoro. That, in his opinion, Zoro may represent a strong character that would help you when you feel weak."

Luffy tilted his head to the other side now, staring with a perplexed expression. Franky made a sort of '_Ooh_' sound, nodding understandingly to what she was saying. Slowly Luffy was going over the short explanation, making sure he understood it completely before jumping to any conclusions - as he _so often did_. He was the CAPTAIN! He couldn't _make mistakes_ like that!

"I don't get it."

Robin smiled gently, having suspected that may have been his answer. "Can you think of anything that has happened recently that would upset you, Captain-san? Even if you think it wasn't important? Or, perhaps, something that may have happened several years ago on this day?"

Luffy crinkled up his nose, apparently not liking the fact that the existence of _Zoro_ was being questioned again, but he could understand where she was coming from. Sort of.

Alright, maybe not really, but he could at least pretend to.

"Well... not really. Oh -- well there was this one time the other day when Sanji wouldn't let me eat meat after lunch because he said I ate only _ten minutes ago_." Luffy huffed lightly. Franky raised his eyebrows, briefly wondering if something like that could have caused a break down, but knowing Luffy and how he was with meat anything was possible.

"Woa woa woa!!" Franky suddenly yelled out, leaping to his feet and holding his hands out to the side. Both of Luffy and Robin turned quickly to look at him, waiting eagerly to hear what his latest interruption was. "Are you sayin' that Zoro might not really exist, Luffy? 'Cause I gotta tell you, I am SUPER positive he does!"

Luffy jumped to his feet as well, standing on the bed and towering over his Nakama, "WHAT !! I didn't say that!! I was only saying that because Robin ASKED! Of course Zoro really exists!"

Franky nodded firmly, arms crossed, "Good."

Luffy grinned broadly, dropping down onto the bed to bounce a little on his bottom, "Hey, Franky - can you go turn the ship around? I really wanna go find Zoro now. He's probably really cold out there..."

Franky stood up and gave a poor impression of a salute to his Captain, "Aye, aye, Captain! Turnin' the ship around on the double! I'll stay up on deck to keep an eye out for Zoro in the water!"

"CAPTAIN USOPP HAS ARRIVED! HAVE NO FEAR, ALL TROUBLES WILL BE COMFORTED AND ALL MYSTERIES WILL BE SOLVED!"

Luffy and Franky began clapping for their Sniper's rather _dashing_ entry, Robin laughing quietly at their liar's newest antics. He was wearing a Doctor's lab coat (which seemed entirely too small for him, but it didn't look as though that bothered him in the least) a pair of rubber gloves, and a _flu mask_. There was no doubt in Robin's mind that he had managed to convince himself of this _Silent Death Disease_, or at least was trying desperately to keep up the lie so others might begin to believe it. He _was_ rather silly like that sometimes, after all.

"Why are you wearing Chopper's stuff, Usopp?" Luffy asked excitedly, looking as though he was tackling some sort of large mystery.

"... I'm not wearing anything out of the ordinary !! It's just that... um... I SEEMED TO HAVE --" Usopp broke off into a fit of hideously fake coughing, "I SEEMED TO HAVE CAUGHT A COLD!!" More coughing, " DON'T WORRY, THOUGH!" And more, "I'LL BE FINE. I'LL LIVE!! Speaking of which, how are _you_ feeling, Luffy? I mean, you know you can talk to me about _anything_, right? Why, back on my home Island they call me _Usopp the Kind-Hearted Soul_ because I spend hours each day listening to the problems of each and every person in the Village. 327 People, to be exact."

Luffy started laughing again, sinking into the bed that he had been standing on earlier. He wasn't exactly sure what Usopp was doing, but he looked pretty funny while doing it.

Franky raised a curious eyebrow at the long nose before shrugging and continuing out of the room to follow _Captain's Orders_. He hadn't a clue what their Sniper was up to, but unfortunately he knew he couldn't stick around long enough to find out. Sunny needed him to turn her around, so that's just what he was going to do!

"No, seriously, Luffy. How _are_ you?" Usopp asked, sliding over to sit on the edge of the bed Luffy lay on, with an overly exaggerated _'sympathetic'_ look across his face.

Luffy tilted his head to the side, looking as _deep in thought_ as he could manage. "Hmmm... I'm hungry."

Usopp turned to look pleadingly at Robin, silently begging for her help.

"I've already discussed with Captain-san about Doctor-san's thoughts on the situation. He hasn't been able to think of anything upsetting him lately." Robin offered with a smile, but it didn't seem to help the liar in the least.

"W-WHAAAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, ROBIN! YOU'RE SO FUNNY SAYING ALL THESE WEIRD THINGS! RIGHT LUFFY, ISN'T ROBIN FUNNY?? HAHAHA !" Usopp nearly shrieked out in a high-pitched wail, obviously nervous and nearly caught in whatever lie he may have been telling.

"I'm _huuuuuuungrrryyyyyyyy_." Luffy whined, completely ignoring Usopp's panicked fit a few inches away from him, looking longingly towards the door. Sadly, most of what Usopp and Robin had said completely missed the meat-crazed Captain by a mile. Once he had uttered those fateful words _I'm hungry_ in response to Usopp, his mind had been completely consumed by it.

"Luffy, listen to me, this is _important!_" Usopp pressed, huffing a little.

"But Usooooopp..."

"It's alright, Long Nose-kun." Robin interrupted, an arm sprouting out of the bed to lay a hand on Usopp's arm. Usopp turned back to look at her, but she only shook her head at him.

Usopp let out a loud, exasperated sigh and flopped back in his chair, not quite sure what to do. Robin had just completely stopped his one and only purpose for being in the _highly contagious _room of the _Silent Death Disease_ and Luffy was in a completely different world by now - most likely _meat_ world, by the hungry look in his eye - and would not be answering any of his gentle and subtle prodding.. not that Robin would let him, that is. Nami was definitely going to have his head if _he_ at least didn't get any information out of their Captain...

'_Damnit... where the hell __**is**__ Nami, anyway?! And where did Franky go! I can't do this all by myself, you know! I mean, I know I __**am**__ the Greatest Sea Captain to sail the seas, but this is just ridiculous. Robin's not helping at all.'_ Usopp thought sullenly to himself, watching as Luffy continued to whine on the bed about food.

'_Luffy's going to be crazy for ever. I just know it.'_

**A/N: **I know this wasn't much of a chapter for waiting an entire month for, but Chapter Three will be up soon. ; O;


	3. Perseverance

**Authors' Notes:** Sorry for taking so long to update these, guys. We've been re-writing this chapter a few times until we were finally happy with it. XD This chapter and the chapter right after it (chap 4) probably could have/should have been the same chapter, but we wanted to space it out more. Chapter four is SUPER short - only about 2 pages long. We're not going to promise that we'll have the next chapter out next week, but hopefully we'll have it out... um.. before we all die of old age. Thank you for everyone who's put up with us for this long! We've got somewhere around five more chapters left until this fic's finished, we just hope everyone who's been reading it will decide to stick around until then.

* * *

**Chapter Three:  
Perseverance**

A low rumble droned out through the air far behind Sunny, drawing the attention of one rather unhappy Captain. Luffy had been eyeing the brewing storm off and on for quite a few minutes, ever since he and Robin had gone out onto the balcony that ran along the backside of the ship. The two of them had been trying to keep an eye out for their lost Swordsman - although only one of them could even remember who it was they were looking for.

With a bone of meat in each hand, and a flu mask over his mouth, Monkey D Luffy watched those clouds that loomed in the distance with a contemplating expression. Despite the fact that it had been well over fifteen minutes since he had sent Franky off to turn the ship around, Sunny hadn't changed course in the least. Though he wasn't worried whether or not Franky was actually trying to do what he said he would or not - he couldn't help but wonder what was taking the Cyborg so long.

Robin, on the other hand, wasn't sure what to make of the situation. She could tell that her Captain was growing more and more irritated by each passing moment. The way that he stared at that storm had begun to make her feel a little uneasy, as though any moment he was about to do something incredibly rash. Turn the ship around himself, leap into the sea in an attempt to "save Zoro", to proclaim this entire event to be some sort of game he had made up -- whatever it was, she was sure he wouldn't take much longer to act.

Luffy pulled the flu mask out a little to stuff one of the bones of meat into his mouth before letting the mask snap back against his face. Robin had been right in thinking he was becoming more irritated the longer that time went by - time that he believed Zoro to be floating in the water with no way of knowing where anyone was. Until the ship turned back to sail the way they had just came, all Luffy could do was hope that Zoro had decided to stay put rather than try to swim after the ship. Knowing that idiot's lack of direction, they just might never find him - and the fact that _Luffy_ just might be the only person on that ship that was actually worried didn't ease the young Captain's mind any.

'_Don't think like that! Of course Zoro'll be okay! He's not gonna get tired __**that**__ soon, right? Even if there is a storm, we'll find him in time.'_ He finally pushed a little concealed smile onto his face from behind the flu mask and nodded at his own thoughts. He was certain as long as he kept thinking positively everything would end up alright.

----

"DAMNIT, MOVE ALREADY! I TOLD YOU IT'S CAPTAIN'S ORDERS!"

"LIKE HELL I'M GOING TO MOVE, SHITTY CYBORG!

Sanji and Franky had been arguing at each other for quite some time now, and had even gone as far as to get into what was sure to soon turn into an all-out brawl. Sanji had his foot planted on Franky's face, trying to shove him away from the Helm that they stood no more than three yards away from, while Franky had one large hand on the other's face, trying to push him out of the way. The argument hadn't come to any blows being dealt between one another, but it was obvious that could change at any moment.

Both Chopper and Usopp watched in horror at the side-lines as the nearly violent fight went on, while Nami only cheered her champion on, standing guard close to the Helm. Her words of encouragement didn't exactly help the situation, either - with only a single word from his _precious Tangerine Jewel_, Sanji was willing to fight to the death to keep Franky away from turning the ship around.

"If you let him near the helm, I won't speak to you for a week, Sanji!" Nami yelled out mercilessly, pointing sternly towards the two of them.

"Excuse me -- is anyone listening to me?" Usopp called out, hands cupped around his mouth as he tried to get the attention of well, _anyone_. Franky and Sanji hardly even noticed the long-nose was even there, much less that he was trying to say something - and Nami was far too busy threatening Sanji and guarding the helm to be bothered. As for Chopper... the poor little thing was trying his damnedest to be the peacemaker and get everyone to just stop arguing.

"Come on, we can't just let Luffy's shark buddy stay out there LOST! You heard him about how he gets lost SUPER easy!! And it's CAPIN'S ORDERS! Come on, little brother! Have a little LOVE!" Franky wailed out pitifully, obviously emotionally over taken by the situation. The Cyborg still hadn't quite sorted out whether _Zoro_ was supposed to be a Shark, a Human, or a Marimo, but he couldn't help but to feel a tug at his heart strings at the thought of his Captain's Buddy being lost out there.

"I don't give a damn about some shitty shark right now, bastard! Nami-swan is taking responsibility as _First Mate_ - Chopper even said Luffy's _not all there_ right now! - and she says NOT TO TURN THIS SHITTY SHIP AROUND!" Sanji yelled through gritted teeth, shoving harder against the Cyborg's face.

Franky's eyes widened sharply at Sanji's last words, which had apparently been the last straw for the shipwright.

"Shitty ship...? SHITTY SHIP? **WHAT SHITTY SHIP**?"

"Oi, Nami - tell Franky how crazy it is to turn the ship around! That's just plain suicide! I mean, that's _obviously_ where Luffy got that weird Silent and Deadly Disease of Hallucination that can eat the heart out of any man who has it!" Usopp whispered urgently to the Navigator, hiding some behind the helm and tugging at her arm in an attempt to get her attention _without_ being noticed by the two raging shipmates not far from them.

Nami snapped her head sharply in Usopp's direction, a rather frighteningly shadowed look on her face that made the Sniper cringe back in fear. "_Usopp!_ If you haven't _noticed yet_, we ARE trying to keep Franky from turning the ship around! And stop hiding there and do something useful!" She hissed back at him, leaning toward the cowering liar.

In the moment that Nami had turned to glower at Usopp, Franky had managed to dash past Sanji and _nearly_ grabbed a hold of the wheel only to have the Chef knock him back again with a forceful blow to the chest. Unfortunately, this only fueled the tension between the two and before any of the by-standers could do a thing, the shouting match had turned into an all-out fight.

"HOW DARE YOU IGNORE NAMI-SAN'S REASONABLE ORDERS, YOU BASTARD!"

----

"I'm going to turn the ship around." Luffy suddenly announced to no one in particular, whirling around on the spot to stare at Robin with a look that seemed to say _'I've made up my mind and there's nothing you can do to stop me.'_

Despite that determined look, she had almost begun to protest his decision to sail off into a storm after someone that only one person on the ship could remember, put all their lives in danger for something that didn't even seem possible to be real. However, nearly as quickly as the thought came into her mind, Robin realized her Captain knew all too well what laid ahead for them - what sort of dangers there were inside that storm. Not dangers for a ship built by one of the top Shipwrights in the world, with the strongest of woods - but for one lone Nakama floating helplessly on the sea with no protection from the cruel weather. Of course she still couldn't say that she completely believed that Zoro even existed, but as long as there was the slightest chance that one of her Nakama could be out there, stranded and forgotten, it was enough to put aside all objections she might have had.

A small, almost sad smile made it's way onto her face as she found herself feeling a little upset with herself at even having the smallest of objections with whatever her Captain may do, or want to do. Even if this Zoro ended up not existing at all - she was certain the Thousand Sunny would be able to withstand whatever the storm might have for them, and one more adventure wouldn't hurt the crew.

"Of course, Captain." She said as she followed after Luffy, who had already started off with no sign that he had even heard a word she had said.

A moment or two later the two of them stepped out onto the deck, their eyes instantly drawn towards the other end of the ship. Robin turned slightly to look at Luffy for his reaction to all the mayhem going on at the Helm, unable to bring herself to be very surprised at the display. Luffy, a bit unexpectedly, seemed unchanged, only reaching up to readjust his hat slightly.

Although she had expected Luffy to slingshot himself across the ship to either break up the fight or join in it himself, he only started to walk towards the front of the ship, pace no faster than it had been before. Following close behind him, she was beginning to hear the yelling more clearly as they drew nearer to the Helm.

"F-Franky, just _listen_ to her for a minute!" Usopp pleaded nervously with the Cyborg, being held firmly in place out in the open by Nami, who had apparently had enough of his hiding. "If we go back, we'll ALL catch that disease - and-and then the next thing you know, we'll all be looking for imaginary Nakama! It's a DISEASE, I tell you! Didn't you hear how DEADLY it is? AND DID I MENTION THE IMAGINARY NAKAMA?"

"AAAH! FRANKY, PLEASE LISTEN TO HIM, I'VE NEVER HEARD OF THAT DISEASE BEFORE!!" Chopper wailed, tears running down his furry little face as he failed to hide correctly behind Nami's leg.

Both Franky and Sanji stopped in mid-swing as their Captain passed right by them, all eyes suddenly locked onto the Rubber Man as he pulled down his flu mask and took a seat at the Helm. Robin had stopped a little ways behind the group, watching to see how the others would react without her interference, but close enough to act if necessary. Both Usopp and Chopper nearly fell over in horror at seeing the flu mask now off of the other's face.

Without a word to anyone, Luffy reached up in a most confident manner and sharply whirled the wheel hard to the left, causing everyone to sway and stumble a little from the drastic change in course.

As should be expected, and much to Nami's horror - Luffy really _did_ have no clue how to navigate a ship. First he pulled the wheel too far to the left, then he spun the wheel around the opposite way, sending it too far to the right. It was a horrible and painful scene for the Navigator to watch, her idiot of a Captain handling their precious Ship with such little common sense she hardly thought it was possible.

"LUFFY! What the hell are you doing?! Are you insane?" Nami screeched, lunging toward Luffy and pulling at his rubber arm only to have it stretch as she pulled.

"The mask! The mask, Luffy!" Both Chopper and Usopp cried out in unison, a look of horror mirrored on each other's faces.

"Are you trying to kill us? You don't know how to steer a ship!" Nami yelled, pulling uselessly on her Captain's arm.

The rest of the crew stayed fixed on their spots, watching on as Nami struggled to get the Rubber Boy away from the Helm. Finally, he turned sharply to look at his Navigator, the frustrated yet determined look on his face taking her back a little.

"No, I don't know how to sail!" He admitted almost sharply. "I can't turn the ship around to look for Zoro myself!" Everyone was silent on board the Thousand Sunny, all eyes on Luffy as he turned to look at each of his crewmen in turn as he continued to speak, "I don't know how to cook, so if he's hungry when we find him, I can't make him something to eat! I don't know how to tell him lies that'll make him laugh and cheer up. If he's sick or hurt, I can't do anything to help. If the ship gets hurt in the storm, I don't know how to fix it, and I don't know how to figure out who made everyone forget him!"

Luffy stopped for a moment, watching his Nakama quietly before continuing, his voice lower and calmer than before, "I won't go on without Zoro as long as I know he's out there. The only thing I can do is kick the guy's ass who took Zoro away from us. The rest of the stuff I can't do by myself."

Listening to Luffy's little speech seemed to have just about the same effect on everyone but Robin and Franky, who already were aware of their Captain's feelings. It was hard for them to hear Luffy telling them how he couldn't save Zoro on his own - hard for them to know that their Captain shouldn't even have to be asking for their help in the first place. They all knew what he was saying was nothing but the truth, but that didn't make it any easier to hear - but if that was what it took to get them to help him, Luffy was willing to say it as many times as he needed to.

Robin smiled a little at her Captain and his determination, wondering if anyone of them would have the heart to turn him down after all of that. Franky had raised his sunglasses to wipe a small tear away, sniffling and nodding emotionally at Luffy. Sanji, meanwhile, had seemed to have calmed his love-induced rage and was watching his Captain silently and solemnly.

Chopper and Usopp were both still a little nervous at the flu mask being off of Luffy's mouth to keep his _'disease'_ from spreading, but couldn't manage to raise their eyes from the floor. Though Usopp had heard a speech similar to this one that time in Arlong Park, this time it seemed to have a weight on it unlike before.

His behavior from earlier that day had changed so much from when they had thought he was _insane_. First he had refused to believe that they couldn't remember Zoro, then he had seemed to care-free and sure that things would work out alright. Now.. it was as though all the events of the day had finally sunk into his mind and he had realized that they had to find him soon or he just might be lost forever.

With the way he looked at everyone, knowing that they were his only hope of saving his Swordsman - his Zoro - they couldn't dare refuse him.

"Alright, alright. I get it -- get up, Luffy." Nami said with an overly exaggerated sigh, swatting Luffy away from the Helm. Without a moment of hesitation, Luffy leaped up from the seat, a smile slowly spreading onto his face as he turned to look at his other Nakama while Nami went about righting the ship's course. Chopper, with large shimmering eyes, looked up at Luffy and smiled hopefully at him while Usopp dropped his hand on the Doctor's hat, looking as though he was getting ready to flatter himself with lies.

"Well, you _know_... In my Village, they once called me _Legendary Detective Usopp_! There wasn't a mystery I couldn't solve. Why, there was this one time that I had to find an _invisible_ person! Not only that, but I had to figure out how he got invisible, too! So, obviously, this small mystery should be no problem for the _Legendary Detective Usopp_!"

"REALLY?!" Chopper wailed, eyes sparkling up at his hero.

Luffy's small smile broke out into a large grin as he watched his Nakama. Despite the fact that they didn't even really believe Zoro existed, they were starting to separate to their various stations to help in whatever way they could. Usopp was idling around, as usual, bragging to Chopper and anyone that would listen about his many Mysterious Adventures as a Detective. Sanji had lit a new cigarette and was heading towards the kitchen, saying something about making a stew, while Robin informed everyone that she was going to be looking for any clues about the situation before heading off towards the Library. Franky danced his way to the side of the ship, calling out for the _little Shark Buddy _to come on out. Yes, perhaps he wasn't quite on the right track, but Luffy at least knew that his heart was in the right place.

Luffy let out a loud round of laughter and let all the tension fall apart, though unable to shake free a tiny last bit of worry that was determined to cling to his chest despite all the support he seemed to be getting from his crew. Even though he knew they still doubted his existence, in their own weird way he knew that his Nakama would never loose their faith in him.

Now all they needed to do was to find Zoro and things could go back to normal. Then they could finally throw a birthday party for Zoro, and Luffy would be sure to make up for it's tardiness ten fold with his present. Even if he did still have a little wonder in the back of his mind of whether the Swordsman would even _like_ his present at all - he had already made up his mind about it.

He bubbled with the rising anticipation of his and Zoro's inevitable reunion and bolted off to the head of the ship. Leaping up to the edge, he leaned over the railing--that sure, challenging grin breaking his face as they sped ever-nearer toward the dark, howling horizon.

"We're coming Zoro !!" His confident voice rang out across the water and in the ears of everyone aboard the Thousand Sunny. Whether it were imagination or reality, it seemed that even the beastly Sunny roared out with Luffy as her bow plunged into the rushing waters, waves crashing and crescenting about her.

----

The storm had come on hard and fast, but the Mugiwara hadn't faltered in the least. As the rain hammered down on them and the wind threatened to sweep them off the deck, Franky stood fast at the helm, his heavy body blocking some of the wind from Nami as he helped her hold the helm steady. The rest of the crew, including Robin and Sanji, were at all ends of the ship calling out for Zoro, clutching desperately at the lines that were latched around their waists. Tensions were running high, and despite the fact that nearly none of them believed in the existence of a lost Swordsman, it was obvious in their face and voice that they were more than a little worried for this Nakama that wasn't supposed to exist.

It had been hours since they had dived head-first into the storm, and Luffy had nearly screamed himself hoarse in an attempt to be heard above the roaring waves. He hadn't given himself the chance to give into the thought that there was no hope for Zoro, only allowing himself to think of the fun they would have once he was found. It was just another adventure, right? He'd definitely have a good laugh with the moss-headed man over the whole thing later. Though, he had a feeling that the manly pirate would take a while to find any amusement in those flares that Usopp had insisted on sending up every fifteen minutes - Luffy knew they'd do nothing but aggravate the man who had absolutely no sense of direction.

Luffy was on the fore deck beside Robin and the Figure head, refusing to give his voice a rest. As much as he tried to tell himself that everything was going to be alright, his chest seemed to clench painfully when a huge wave would crash over the deck, wondering if Zoro would be able to handle the monstrous waves and keep himself afloat. It seemed that the storm was nearly too much for Sunny to handle, like it was determined to bring them down deep into the sea.

"I've never seen a storm like this before... it doesn't make any sense! Even for the Grand Line!" Nami cried out to Franky, turning her head to look up at the large man, "There wasn't even any warning at all! I don't know how to tell what's coming next!"

"This is looking SUPER bad, Straw Hat!!" Franky bellowed out across the ship, wrapping a large hand around Nami's waist to keep her from being tossed about the deck while his other hand held fast onto the wheel, "Sunny can handle the storm just fine right now, but if it gets any worse we might have a SUUPER problem!"

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?" Luffy called out, cupping a hand around his ear in an attempt to hear the Cyborg Shipwright while wrapping his other elastic arm around the railing several times, a little worried that the line around his waist might not hold.

"**WE'RE GOING TO ****DIE**" Nami screamed on the top of her lungs, both in response to Luffy and in horror of a massive way headed their way.

Somewhere to the side, Usopp let out a high-pitched shriek of terror at the tremendous wave. Chopper and Usopp latched onto each other, repeating together Nami's terror-filled words from only a moment earlier. Sanji whirled around towards the sound of his precious Nami-swan.

"FRANKY!! You shitty bastard, get your hand off Nami-swan! Robin-chwan, Nami-swan, don't worry, I'll protect you both from this shitty storm!" He wailed as he sprinted towards his loves, a stream of hearts sprouting from his head, far too preoccupied with his _Maidens in Distress_ to worry about the wave everyone seemed to be screaming about.

Luffy could feel the direness of the situation grow with each gust and swell. He turned his face again toward the sea, taking in a deep breath and screamed out Zoro's name, only to have it lost among the howling of the wind and the crashing of the waves. It was only a moment later, with Franky yelling for everyone to hold fast, that the terrifying wave crashed down on top of them, pushing the ship beneath the waves.


	4. Keep Breathing

**Chapter Four:  
Keep Breathing**

_thunk thunk thunk_

Luffy could hear the noisy repairs being made to his ship in the distance, but he made no move to join in the efforts. The storm had lasted two long, restless days and it had beaten relentlessly down on poor Sunny the entire time, never letting up for a single moment. It was difficult on all of them - they were all tired and achy from getting such little sleep in the raging storm.. but Luffy couldn't manage to pull himself out of the wooden hammock that had once belonged to Zoro to help. He could hardly manage to _keep breathing_. Not from any wounds, or dire lack of meat, but simply from the fact that it was difficult to convince himself it was worth it any longer.

The now infamous Captain of the Straw Hat crew had lost many things in his life. A sock, his sense of direction, possibly his sanity, the arm of someone he cared about more than nearly anyone else in the world.. and yet, it was strange how this newest loss seemed to tear right into his heart. He had always had a strong sense of determination and will to live - to finish the journey he had set out on. And yet now, with each slow breath he took, it was all he could do to convince himself to take the next. Doubts seemed to over whelm him, nearly over shadowing the grief that had a hold on him like nothing before.

_Could he sail on without Zoro?_

Before he had met Zoro, he hadn't been very sure how he'd reach One Piece. He assumed he would figure it out once the time came, but after the Swordsman had joined his crew, it seemed almost natural that Zoro would help him clear a path all the way to the end. He, the Pirate King, with the Master of all Swordsman at his side. In the end, he knew that's how it was going to be.

Zoro was to be his Swordsman - and Zoro was to help him get to the Grand Line. As simple as that.

It was far more than the man's physical strength that Luffy needed--he had a good amount of that on his own. It was his emotional strength and unwavering conviction. Zoro did something for the boy captain that not many people had been able to do in his life: He made Luffy want to strive to be better, to be stronger. When he fell to his knees, Zoro was there to push him back up and force him to be a dependable Captain. Zoro had once told him that he would never follow a man who was weaker than him, and ever since when Luffy felt himself breaking those words would echo endlessly in his mind until he pulled himself together again.

He had never even dreamed for a moment that his First Mate -- the one who had stuck by him through _everything_, the one who he had secretly treasured above all others, even above his play mate, Usopp -- wouldn't always be by his side to hold his back, to bat the swords and knives away from him, to... just simply be _with_ him until the end. Zoro would never die, and Luffy would never let him.

How could it have all gone so wrong?

Here Monkey D. Luffy lay, face hidden from the world by his beloved Straw Hat, curled up in Zoro's boxed hammock, tear stains streaked down his usually bright and cheerful face. He knew he needed to be on Deck with his crew, that they needed him right now. He was the _Captain_.

But Zoro was _dead_.

The others should be down there with him - grieving along side of him, not knowing what to do now that their rock had been broken and stolen away from them forever. He didn't blame them, though. Whatever the reason was, they couldn't remember him and Luffy definitely wasn't going to try to push the matter further than that. Just as they didn't try to push for him to come on deck and help them with repairs - whether they believed Zoro ever even existed in the first place or not, they respected him enough to let him at least have this.

That storm had nearly torn apart their beloved Ship, a Ship that had been built by the best this world had to offer, with the best wood Beli could buy.. and yet even as fierce as Sunny was, it was hardly a match for the storm. Had they not pulled out when they did, Franky had assured him Sunny wouldn't have lasted much longer.

_'I've never seen such a SUPER strong storm like that before!'_ He had said - which was quite something coming from a man who had lived in Water Seven for nearly his entire life.

As much as he wanted to believe that Zoro could have survived it, it had gotten harder and harder to hope for that the longer the storm had raged on. With the godly waves that crashed down on them keeping Sunny pinned below the water for what seemed to be an eternity to most of them before allowing it to pop back up... he couldn't have denied it much longer. By the time the storm would have hit him, Zoro would have been at least a little tired from treading water for that long -- but after two straight days of it.. it was hard for even Luffy to keep up the energy to continue searching - and he was aboard the ship.

And just as many times before when he would feel his confidence wavering even slightly, he could hear Zoro's words ringing in his head, telling him he wouldn't follow a man weaker than him. Only this time, he couldn't bring himself to pull himself together to be the Captain his crew needed.

'_I want to be where you are, Zoro.'_

* * *

**Authors' Notes:** First of all, we want to thank everyone for all their reviews and compliments of the story so far. :") ! It really encourages us to keep on writing by seeing so many nice comments (even if we still are as slow as a sloth with posting new chapters XD). Right now we feel really bad for Luffy in the story, who is just layin' there wallowing in grief, and we really really wish we could say that things get better for him. :'( But we are really looking forward to some interesting scenes in the chapters ahead, and both Stos and I hope that you guys stick around to see it. XD

**MarimoLurv:** I don't think me or Stostina have ever read that book - and I really hope it's not similar to this story. xD That wouldn't be very good if they ended up being alike..

Keep on reviewing, everyone! 3 Who knows, we might even manage to get a chapter out within a month ;) (( I'm lying, aren't I? XD ))


	5. I Miss You

**Author's Note:** And two years later, here we are. The fanfic is still incomplete and we haven't updated since 2007. Over this time, each time a new person reviews or a new person adds this fanfic to their Fanfic Alert list thing, I thought to myself, "Wow, what? People are still reading that?" and I tell myself we'll update it soon – but as you can tell, we never do.

Well, I want to say Stostina and I both love and thank everyone who read or reviewed A Memory Forgotten so far. We're SUUUUUUUUPER sorry for not updating in so long, guys!

**Chapter Five:**

**I Miss You**

* * * * * * *

Days had passed since the storm and still Luffy hadn't pulled himself together, appearing only briefly in front of his crew only to disappear moments later. He had tried to put a brave face on for his nakama, tried to smile for them when they asked if he was alright, tried to help with the chores about the ship.

Luffy may have lost a precious nakama, but the rest of his crew were beginning to feel as though they had lost their Captain. If Luffy kept on like this, they feared only a hollow shell of his former self would remain.

The crew, save for Luffy, had gathered in the galley. Their Captain had taken it upon himself to take watch duty for the day, leaving the rest of them the opportunity to sort things out.

Sanji stood in the kitchen, Franky lounged on the couch, and the rest of the crew were gathered around the table.

"There has to be something we can do." Sanji murmured around his cigarette.

"What is there that we haven't done already?" Usopp sighed, head on the table and looking as depressed as he could get.

"What about playing with him?" Nami offered.

Chopper mimicked Usopp's actions perfectly, sighing along with him, "Luffy doesn't want to play."

"I wouldn't suppose he would." Robin began quietly, "He has just lost one of his nakama, after all. He must be in a lot of pain right now."

Nami slammed her cup down, leaning forward, "But that _Zoro_ doesn't even exist!"

"Even so, he existed to Luffy. Even if Zoro was never here, it hurts just as much for him."

Nami lowered her gaze, gripping onto her cup.

"Straw hat totally off his rocker." Franky lolled his head to one side in gesture, then to the other side continuing, "Some nakama of mine lost and dead and me not really give a damn. I don't know which one is worse! Aaow, this must be SUPER tough on Straw hat, either way! This is the worse week **ever**!" He cried out before turning away from the others to sniff tearfully.

Sanji threw his burnt out cigarette on the floor angrily and ground it with the end of his shoe, "What kind of shitty situation is this, anyway? If someone's responsible for this, there's going to be **hell** to pay when I find him."

"I don't get it, things like this don't just _happen_ to people for no reason." Chopper began, pulling himself up and looking determinedly at the others, "I don't know if something's happened to **Luffy**, or if something's happened to _us _but until we can figure out what's going on, we have to be there for him."

Everyone let out a _yeah_ at Chopper, each of them drawing out of their pitying state to a look of determination.

Usopp perked up, sitting up as well, "What if we all do something or get him something at the next island to try to cheer him up? Like a lot of meat?"

A thin plume of smoke came from a newly lit cigarette as Sanji shook his head, "It won't cheer him up if he won't eat it. He's hardly touched his food since the storm. If Chopper wasn't packing vitamins into what little he _does_ eat, I'd be worried he'd pass out from lack of nutrition."

"Even if all we can do is be at his side, our feelings will reach Luffy. Just knowing that his nakama are there for him will be of some comfort." Robin said with a sad smile, "I'm sure most of us understand to some degree what he's going through, losing a precious person."

Franky sniffed loudly behind them all, staring out a window and trying his best not to look on the verge of crying his eyes out for their Captain, "You got that right, Nico Robin."

Chopper nodded, "And maybe if we get things we know he likes, maybe it'll make him feel better since we thought so much about him."

"Uuuuuuumm," Luffy's voice came suddenly from the Den Den Announcement, "There's an Island over there."

Everyone had turned towards the sullen Den Den at the sound of their Captain. There was none of the usual excitement when he spotted a new island. That bright ring that always brought a smile to their faces had disappeared, and there wasn't a single one of them that didn't miss it.

"Alright, it's decided then. Someone should stay on the ship with Luffy, everyone else can split up when we get to the island. Find something you know he'll like, or try to figure out what's going on. Maybe someone there will know something."

They all stood as one when Nami finished, as determined as if they were about to head into battle for one of their nakama's sakes.

"Mission cheer up Luffy GO!" Usopp declared loudly, nose pointed in the air.

* * * * *

Luffy felt sick.

He had tried to do his best for his nakama's sake, but everything he did was only half-hearted. Nothing he could do was enough to put his crew at ease.

It was tiring and painful.

Everywhere he went on the ship he kept expecting to see Zoro standing there or sleeping against something. Every time he had the harsh reality slap him in the face when he realized Zoro wasn't going to be there. It hurt more than any wound he could have gotten from an enemy, like seeing Shanks sacrifice his arm over and over again for his sake.

The worse part was that no matter how he looked at it the situation just didn't make sense. Luffy knew damn well he wasn't insane. He couldn't just completely imagine all this time they had with Zoro. He wouldn't accept that.

Earlier that day he had retreated to the crow's nest to try to get a hold of himself and maybe sort out his head. Now, even though the rest of his crew were running around below on the deck preparing to dock, he still couldn't bring himself to go down to help. He knew his crew could take care of it, if they saw his sullen face it would only cause them more worry.

"Zoro... what happened to you?" Luffy quietly spoke into the empty room.

Even though he had come to terms with Zoro's fate, Luffy still couldn't help but have a feeling of uncertainty.

However, he knew he needed to accept what happened. Even for someone as strong as Zoro, he doubted he'd be able to survive a storm like that with nothing to keep him afloat in the middle of the sea.

Luffy slumped in his seat and closed his eyes, listening to the distant sound of Nami bossing everyone around on deck, making the ship ready to dock. He knew he should be down there with them, giving the orders himself and working along side his nakama, but they could handle this job on their own this time. He couldn't bring himself to put on a lying face for them, smiling, cheerful - it would hurt them as much as it would himself.

Even as he sat there slumped, staring out the window at the port they drew closer to, he could hear Zoro's voice in his mind chiding him.

'_So what are you going to do now, Luffy? Just sit here for the rest of your life, moping, letting your crew do everything for you while someone else passes you up and takes One Piece?'_

Luffy pulled his Strawhat off his head and idly turned it between his hands. He knew it wasn't a rare thing for a pirate crew to lose one of their men. Ace had that burden to bear as well, and it was one of his brother's own men that had done the killing. Luffy had wanted to ask him how he could handle it. Luffy knew his brother felt the same way toward nakama that he did - your nakama were your family.

As much as he had wanted to, he couldn't bring himself to ask the question.

Maybe Luffy couldn't stand and face the sea with his head raised today, but he knew that he wouldn't keep himself hidden away for the rest of his life. Would Zoro have followed such a weak man? Would his crew?

He knew he was entitled to his mourning, but he could only allow it to last for so long. This definitely wasn't the time to be giving up.

"Um.. Luffy?" Chopper cautiously peeked his head into the room, snapping his Captain out of his daze, "We're at the island. Some of us are going to split up so we can replenish supplies. Robin's going to stay here.. Are you going to be okay?"

Luffy looked up at Chopper and gave a small smile, "Yeah, I'll be fine. Robin doesn't really have to stay, I'll watch the ship."

Chopper fidgeted for a moment before a hopeful look appeared, "Hey! Why don't you come with Usopp and me? Maybe you might -"

"Nah, that's okay. You guys go ahead - I'll come later."

The little reindeer's hope faded some, but he still smiled at the prospect of later. "Alright, we'll be back in a little bit, then!"

With that, Chopper took off back down the mast, leaving Luffy alone with his thoughts once again. The smile faded and he turned back to his hat, slowly turning it in his hands. His foot nudged a ridiculously large dumbbell in front of him idly.

"I don't get it..." Luffy quietly said to the empty room, "Why are there so many useless weights if Zoro really wasn't here like they say?"

* * * * *

"So, what'd he say Chopper?"

Chopper looked up at Usopp, "He still wants to stay up there. But he did say he was going to come with us around the city later!"

Usopp gave a small smile and set his hand on top of Chopper's hat, "Alright then. We'll just have to work hard to cheer him up!"

Chopper smiled back and nodded enthusiastically, a determined spark in his eyes.

* * * * *

"Aow! This is _totally_ the worst week ever! How can I just forget my nakama so easily?! What kind of aniki am I? Uwoooo~!" Franky let his head fall limply on his drafting table, sideways next to Thousand Sunny's blueprints, wailing pathetically.

Franky had spent the entire time since they had docked locked up in his workroom trying to remember even the smallest bit of detail about this mysterious shark swordsman. In all honesty, he wasn't really that sure whether or not Zoro was a man who looked like a shark, or a shark fishman. Either way he couldn't find the slightest thing familiar about the man.

He had pulled out Sunny's blueprints to look for some sort of hint. Every bit of that King of Beasts had been specially tailored for each of the Strawhats. Kitchens for the cook, workshop for the long-nose, library for Nico Robin, play area for Strawhat, office for the tanuki, garden for the girlie, and the crow's nest with all it's weights were for anyone wanting a good workout. Honestly, he figured some of his little brothers could use a little toning up, but he definitely wasn't going to say anything about it.

What was there left for this super mysterious swordsman? Maybe he really _was_ a fishman and hung out in the fish tank?

Well, whatever it was, Franky was determined to figure it out.

"There's no way a man can just make something like this up. Aow man~! If this wasn't so tragic, it'd make for a super song... hang in there, Strawhat. I'll remember our little shark buddy!"

* * * * *

Elsewhere on the ship while Franky scoured every page of design looking for anything to help, Robin had taken it upon herself to speak with their Captain.

"Luffy? Do you mind if I talk to you for a minute?" Robin had found Luffy still lurking around in the crow's nest, laying on his back in the middle of the room.

In a proper answer's stead, he only made a sort of agreeing sound.

Satisfied with this response, she made her way fully inside the room and took a seat on the floor next to Luffy.

"How are you doing? You've been up here by yourself for a while now, haven't you?" Robin smiled gently down at him, leaning over slightly to make herself within Luffy's range of sight.

Luffy let out a sigh and turned on his side to face Robin, propping his head up on his hand. "Sorry for not really helping with docking – I knew you guys could handle it."

"It's been pretty hectic this past week around here, hasn't it? With the bad turn of events, I haven't been able to find out more about Zoro. Even though none of us remember him, maybe hearing about him would stir up some memories. And if not, then at least I can know something about him."

Luffy stared at Robin for a few minutes, his thin eyebrows creasing slightly before he suddenly turned his back to her, head now propped by his opposite arm.

"I don't feel like it." He said flatly.

Robin was taken back by her Captain's flat refusal. He had seemed so excited about telling anyone who would listen about Zoro. Then again, that had been before that horrible storm.

"I know how hard this is for you, Luffy… but continuing to grieve like this for so long will only make it harder. Trust me." Robin let out a soft sigh, watching Luffy's back as he tensed. "You truly seemed to be happy before when you were talking about him. And I really would like to hear more about him."

"I know you're worried about me, but it doesn't matter if I talk about him or not. It's not like you believe in him."

"But I believe in _you_, Luffy."

What Robin said hit Luffy like a ton of bricks.

He slowly lifted his head and turned to look over his shoulder at the sincerity in Robin's eyes. With a loud sigh he fell backwards to his original position staring up at the ceiling.

"Zoro'd probably be mad at me." Luffy began, surprising Robin by how steady his voice was when talking, "I've been thinking about it a lot. He'd tell me to stop moping around – that I haven't lost all my nakama. He wouldn't want me to be like this over him."

Luffy said nothing for a few moments, and Robin let him have his silence.

"I want all of you to remember him. To know that he was real. He was our nakama… but a part of me is glad you don't. Part of me doesn't want you to have to feel like this."

The rubber boy sighed, his breath quivering slightly. He pulled his hat out from beneath his head and dropped it wordlessly on his face.

"But that wouldn't be fair for him, would it? I'm sure we'll find some way to remember him." Robin said quietly.

It was hard to see Luffy like this. The man who never seemed to lose that childish smile to be brought down to this. Robin knew just how horrible it was to lose someone so close to you. That was a lesson she had learned at a very young age. However, it was times like this that reminded her of just how little she knew about her Captain.

'_I wonder if he's ever lost someone before'_

"I miss him." Luffy finally said. He wasn't any quieter than before, but when he spoke it seemed as though it had only been a whisper, "A lot."

* * * * *

The bartender slid a drink in front of Nami, and leaned on the counter watching as she downed the glass in one go. He had an amused look on his face as he pulled up his stool and made himself comfortable.

"So you've got a crazy on your ship too, huh?" Yeah, that happens around here a little too often for my liking. People say that it's the sea water. Reckon that there's somethin' funny in it that makes people go kinda loopy when they drink it. This crazy of your's got a habit of drinking sea or bilge water?" The bar keep didn't even bat an eye at the dirty look Nami shot his way at every mention of '_crazy_'.

"He's not crazy. Listen, there's got to be a better explanation than _sea water_! Our Doctor would have caught it if it was that. Plus, if there are a lot of people going crazy, thinking some nakama's missing, then you can't just blame it on the sea water. Geez, you're completely useless." Nami set the glass back on the bar with a loud clank and crossed her arms over her chest with a stubborn frown on her face.

The truth was that she really wouldn't put anything past her idiot of a Captain. Even as a Devil Fruit user she knew Luffy wouldn't hesitate to drink some sea water if he was really inclined to. But that didn't mean that she would believe such a weak explanation.

The bartender laughed at Nami, leaning back a little and setting his hands on his knees, "You're a stubborn one, aren't you? I've heard it all, you know. Can you think of a better explanation? Really, how could an entire crew remember everything except ONE person? Ridiculous. Compared to that, crazed from sea water is a pretty logical reason."

"How can I accept something like that!" Nami snapped out, "There has to be someone behind all this. Don't you know _anything_ that could help us?"

Nami was starting to lose her cool. The moment Sunny had safely docked, she had leapt off the ship telling the others that she'd leave the rest to them. Normally the best person for interrogating information out of locals would be Robin, but she knew that would just leave her alone to try to talk to Luffy. She hadn't the faintest idea what on Earth she could say to him to cheer him up. It had been hard enough for her to handle what had happened to Bellemere – what was she supposed to tell Luffy?

'_Don't worry about it, you're just crazy.'_

'_**Get over it.'**_

Nami knew if anyone could talk to Luffy and make any progress at all, it would be Robin.

"Sorry, Lady, I told you all I know. Not my problem if you can't accept it." The man shrugged and stood, "Look, I gotta get back to work. If ya' need anything, just let me know."

Nami sighed pathetically in defeat and leaned forward on the bar. "Why do we always have such problems? Can't there just be an obvious bad guy for those idiots to beat up? Geez..."

* * * * *

Junk shops were a treasure trove of wonders to the right pair of eyes. Bits and bobs that would normally be considered trash by _common_ people was in fact exactly what Usopp was looking for. He had been in and out of junk shops all day since they docked, not knowing what it was he was looking for in the least.

'_If I can just find something to keep Luffy too busy to think, I know it will help. Hell, with all of us pitching in like this I bet that alone would be enough to make him feel better.'_ Usopp thought to himself as he sifted through a large pile of discounted junk.

'_I wonder what Chopper's doing... he seemed pretty busy when I saw him a few hours ago.'_

Usopp paused in his musings to make a face at the bucket of bits in front of him, "Man, there's nothing in this shop but junk!" He suddenly whined, dropping the empty cola bottle he had picked up back into its bucket. Sure, he could have used it – but that junk really was just a bunch of trash. The worst part was that they were charging as much for an empty bottle than he would pay for a _full_ bottle of cola.

The old man behind the counter only smiled kindly at Usopp, not hearing a word he had said, "That's nice."

Usopp scratched the back of his head and set out of the shop, not sure where to go next. He was sure that he had visited every junk shop in the village – which was surprisingly quite a few – and had gotten a few things from most of them.

He still had no idea what to do. Once he had everything laid out in his workshop, he was sure something would come to him.

"Luffy will probably think of something ridiculous to make! Hah, the great Co-Captain Usopp will definitely-" Despite the promising round of ego-stroking that Usopp was about to give himself in his train of thought, his thoughts were cut short as he was knocked back onto his bottom by a brick wall of a man that stood in his way.

"Oi! Watch where the hell you're- re –re –re – uhhh..." Usopp had started out completely offended; that is until he saw the huge, muscle-bound, sword-carrying guy who he had ran into.

"Oh? Usopp. Damn, it's about time you guys showed up. Where's the ship docked?"


End file.
